


A Christmas to Remember

by KaibaSlaveGirl34



Series: Full House Stories/Crossovers [8]
Category: Full House (US)
Genre: Childhood Memories, Christmas Presents, Epistolary, Family Fluff, Female Friendship, Gen, Holidays, Pre-Season/Series 01, Pre-Series, Presents, Storytelling
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2011-08-08
Updated: 2011-12-09
Packaged: 2017-10-22 09:14:45
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 5,846
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/236467
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/KaibaSlaveGirl34/pseuds/KaibaSlaveGirl34
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Here’s what one Christmas was like with Pam before she died. Takes place before season 1. We have the Tanners with Joey, Jesse and of course, Kimmy!</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Letter

**Author's Note:**

  * For [escritoireazul](https://archiveofourown.org/users/escritoireazul/gifts), [Harry2](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Harry2/gifts).



> In part two of the Season 1 episode "The Seven Month Itch", Danny said that Jesse visited the girls on their birthdays and at Christmastime.
> 
> My friend [Great Northern](http://www.fanfiction.net/u/1471231/Great-Northern) told me I was more than welcome to publish her Full House story [A Christmas to remeber](http://www.fanfiction.net/s/4166099/1/A_Christmas_to_remeber) on here, and I feel more than honored to do so.
> 
> Disclaimer: Genius Jeff Franklin owns Full House. My friend Great Northern owns the story A Christmas to remeber. I own the fanfics that I cook up from time to time.

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Jesse gets a letter from Danny, DJ and Stephanie try to find the presents in the attic (and get caught by Pam), and Joey gets ready for his visit to the Tanners.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here's the first chapter of A Christmas to Remember. :) Hope you like it! :)

**Jesse’s POV**

I walked out of my apartment to get the mail. Even though it was December 2, there was no snow on the ground. _That’s what you get for living in California,_ I always told myself. Then again, who needs snow? I hated skiing, and with snow, my motorcycle couldn’t go as fast. Christmas music was playing outside like always. It seemed to play nonstop and if I have to hear Jingle Bells one more time, I swear I’m gonna scream.

I shivered as I opened the mailbox. Even though there was no snow, it was still cold. I flipped through today’s mail. “Junk, junk, junk, ju-” I said as I went through the mail. I stopped as I reached one letter. It was from my brother-in-law Danny and my sister Pam. I took out the rest of the mail, closed the mailbox and headed back inside.

I settled down inside with a bagel and opened up the letter:

_Dear Jesse,_

_It is Christmas time once again, and we would like to remind you that it’s time for you to come for your annual visit. I know that you probably remembered, but after last year, when you came on the 23rd swearing that you thought it was the 3rd, I decided this was to be safe._

_I should also warn you that my friend, Joey Gladstone, is coming too. He wanted to meet you and have fun with the girls. The girls are really looking forward to you visiting. Stephanie keeps on asking me when are you coming, while DJ just keeps on pestering me about what I got them for Christmas._

_Pam is looking forward to you coming, too. She said something like playing around like old times. Of course, I miss you too, Jess. Make sure you bring your presents for the girls as well._

_Oh, and this time, NO GIRLS! This is a time for family bonding, and all of our last Christmas pictures have either Samantha, or some other girl you brought._

_I told the girls you would come on December 8. That leaves plenty of time for you to pack, and for us to have fun sightseeing and having family bonding time. We hope to see you on the 8th, and if not, I will kill you._

_Danny_

I groaned. Visiting my nieces was fun and all that, but no girls? “Might as well say no breathing,” I mumbled. Plus, Danny’s friend, Joey, was coming. I have seen enough pictures to know that he’s the kind of kid that I beat up as a kid — funny, cracking jokes, prankster and class clown. And, Pam would be pulling all of the old tricks. This Christmas was going to be fun!

**DJ’s POV**

“Steph, is the coast clear?” I whispered to my little sister.

Stephanie peered out the door of the attic and whispered back, “Yep, all clear. Hurry up, though. I’m missing my cartoons.”

I rolled my eyes and began to search through the boxes, looking for our presents. “Home videos, no. Baby pictures, no. Cleaning supplies, no. Emergency cleaning supplies, definitely not,” I mumbled as I searched through the boxes.

“We have **emergency** cleaning supplies? Dad really has gone over the deep end,” Stephanie said from her post.

I nodded my head. “Well, enough chit-chat. Keep your eye on the door. I think I hear Dad whistling Christmas carols right now.”

Stephanie nodded and continued to watch the door. I searched through our junk, and was about to move some old records when Stephanie gave the warning. “Dad’s coming! Quick, what do we do?”

I looked around and spotted a big box. “Get over here. We’ll hide in this box.” She gave me a look, but did it anyway. Well, it was a tight squeeze (and I’m pretty sure the box was breaking), but we were completely hidden in the box.

“Did you hear anything up here, Pam?” I heard Dad say.

“I couldn’t hear anything except you whistling Jingle Bell Rock,” I heard Mom reply.

“Hey, that is a classic song that will stick around for ages,” Dad protested.

“Same as disco,” mumbled Mom. I could almost see her rolling her eyes. “Well, we’ve checked the attic, and nothing is in here. Come on. My dinner will burn.”

I waited until their footsteps faded away, then got up and out of the box.

“I am NEVER doing that again! It’s bad enough that I share the same house with you, but the same **box**?” Stephanie exclaimed.

“Don’t be a drama queen. Besides, keep your voice down. Someone will hear you,” I warned.

“Like me?” Mom said from the doorway.

“Oh, Mom! We were just, uh… what were we doing, Stephanie?”

“I don’t know, but it was all DJ’s idea,” Stephanie protested.

Mom smiled. “I’ll let this one slide. But, girls, can’t you wait until Christmas? It’s only 23 days away. Now come on, I have a dinner to make.” Together, we walked to the kitchen.

**Joey’s POV**

“Oh, great! It’s that time for the visit!” I grinned, looking at my calender. The 8th was circled, and that was only 5 days away.

“I should get packing. But what to pack?” I thought out loud, looking around at my room. It looked like a volcano of clothes had exploded. A bunch of cartoon stuffed animals were everywhere, along with the occasional leftover pizza. If anyone ever asked me about my room, I just said, “Everything has a place, so if I clean it, I won’t know where anything is!”

I grabbed an empty suitcase and began filling it with clothes from the once/clean pile. My other two piles, twice dirty/need to wash and too gross, weren’t fit for a visit to my friend Danny, his daughters and his wife.

“Almost done, I just need-ah there it is,” I said, grabbing my Popeye doll. Some of the floor was revealed, but not too much.

Happy now that I was packed, I went to go shopping for the girls’ presents, whistling Jingle Bell Rock along the way. What can I say? Danny got me into that song.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nice feedback is very much appreciated, of course. :) And I also hope there are a lot of Full House fans out there as well. :)


	2. Kimmy Madness

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joey and Jesse arrive at the Tanners’ doorstep, and Kimmy is introduced.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here’s the next chapter of A Christmas to Remember. In this one, Kimmy Gibbler, DJ’s best friend and the Tanners’ next-door neighbor, makes an appearance. She’s a neat character, and I like how she thinks up zingers and funny stuff to say as well. :)

Danny’s POV

“Girls, get down here! You’ll be late for school!” I shouted up the stairs. Today was not just any day. It was the day that my brother-in-law, Jesse Katsopolis, and my best friend, Joey Gladstone, were coming to visit. Naturally, I had spent the whole week cleaning — that is, until Pam had to tear away the vacuum cleaner after I had vacuumed the same spot nearly a million times.

I walked into the kitchen. Stephanie was eating pancakes, while Pam was still cooking bacon. “Where’s DJ?” I asked Stephanie.

“She’s still upstairs fixing her hair. She had a rough night. You should’ve seen her hair. It was like a monster!” replied Stephanie.

“Hola, Tanners,” Kimmy Gibbler, our neighbor, said, bursting through the door, not even caring to knock.

“Speaking of monsters, Kimmy’s here,” remarked Stephanie.

“Kimmy, why are **you** here? You know we are expecting visitors,” I complained.

“I know, but I smelled some of Mrs. T’s cooking from my house, and Dad went to work early again. Mom cooked something, but she even burnt the cereal. So, what’s on today’s menu? Pancakes and bacon? Yum!” Kimmy said, looking over the counter.

“ **This** is the reason why I left Kimmy _out_ of the letter I sent to Jesse,” I whispered to Pam.

Pam let out a little laugh and said, “Grab some bacon, and the pancakes are right there, Kimmy. DJ is upstairs if you want to go get her.”

“Thanks, Mrs. T.” She reached over and grabbed a few pancakes. “I don’t need to go upstairs. DJ!!” she shouted. Stephanie covered her ears and shut her eyes. I groaned; Jesse and Joey would not like this.

“Coming,” DJ said from upstairs, arriving soon after. “OK, Kimmy, did you finish copying the homework I gave you?”

“No, but I can finish it on the bus. Come on, I have enough pancakes for the both of us in case we get hungry,” replied Kimmy.

“Cool. Thanks, Kimmy,” DJ replied before turning to me. “Oh, and Dad? Can I still have my own room when Uncle Jesse and Joey are here?” she asked.

I replied, “Sure” before turning to Pam. “So, Pam, I guess we won’t be needing that bacon?”

“Oh, we will need it. Joey will eat anything, and he’s bound to have an appetite from flying in here,” joked Pam.

DJ walked out with Kimmy to the bus while Stephanie continued eating, and was soon finished. Then she headed upstairs to brush her teeth before heading back downstairs into the kitchen.

“Steph, I’ll take you to preschool. Pam, watch over Michelle,” I said. Pam nodded. Stephanie put her dishes in the sink, and we walked out to my car.

Jesse’s POV

“I took an airplane, drove for 30 minutes, and why? To go to Peewee’s Playhouse,” I said to myself as I rang the doorbell.

Who else answered it than my loving sister, Pam? She grinned upon seeing me. “Hey there, little bro. Come on in. Joey should be here soon. The girls are at school, and Danny should be home soon,” she said.

I walked in, looking around. The house hadn’t changed much. Danny’s cleaning supplies were still out and the Christmas tree was up — no dust, of course. The usual decorations were up around the house, too. The Santa face looked a little creepy to me; his eyes seemed to always follow me.

Pam looked at me and held out her arms. “What? No girl?”

“Danny forbade me from bringing a girl — another reason why he’s so evil. And, of course, all evil wizards need an evil witch,” I joked, and Pam punched me lightly on the arm and then laughed.

Joey arrived, making a little trumpet noise. He was carrying a suitcase which was overflowing with clothes. My stuff was just two suitcases and my guitar.

“Hey, Jess, good to meet you. Pam, nice to see you again. Finally, I’m in a house that has ice cream 24/7. Mine ran out last week. I think some animal got into it,” Joey announced.

“Nice, Joey. Good to see you again, too. Danny should be back in about 30 minutes. I’m going to watch my bacon. Jesse, don’t kill Joey,” Pam warned, eying me before she disappeared into the kitchen.

“So,” asked Joey, holding out his hands, “You like cartoons?”

I groaned.

**Set forward to when girls return from school**

**DJ’s POV**

Kimmy and I walked into the kitchen and instead of my mom cooking, it was Uncle Jesse. “Uncle J!” I exclaimed and ran over to give him a big hug.

“Hey, Deej,” he said, returning my hug. Then he noticed Kimmy. “Who are you?”

“I’m DJ’s best friend, Kimmy Gibbler. Most of the Tanners always say how much they hate me, but I know they really like me,” Kimmy replied.

“OK…” Uncle Jesse replied. He released me from his hug.

Then he called, “DANNY!”

Dad came rushing in. He looked frantic. “What? What did DJ do?” he asked.

“Hey, I didn’t do anything!” I said in defense.

“No, Danny. I didn’t mean DJ. What I meant was, you never warned me about... **that** ,” Uncle Jesse said, pointing at Kimmy.

“I **do** have a name,” Kimmy said. No one paid much attention to her.

“Well… you’ll find out soon enough,” Dad replied before turning to the entrance to the living room. “Joey! Get in here!”

“What? I was in the middle of watching Bugs Bunny,” replied Joey.

“Hey, Joey,” I said, giving Joey a hug. Kimmy came in to hug too.

“Hey, DJ,” said Joey. Then he noticed Kimmy. “Who are you?”

“I’m Kimmy, DJ’s best friend and neighbor. You can read my bio on-line. I was hoping to meet boys with it,” answered Kimmy. I just smiled. _Welcome to the holidays,_ I thought.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Like I’ve heard one author put it, “If you’re going to mess up, do it with a character that fits.” They didn’t have the Internet back when this would be Christmas of 1986, of course. But Kimmy would say anything. She wouldn’t be hacking into the experimental e-mail system in Silicon Valley yet, but we don’t know how old her brother Garth is, so maybe he did it for her. Or, she could have meant something that’s just weird.
> 
> Nice feedback is — as usual — very much appreciated, of course.. :)


	3. The Annoying Sister

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DJ and Kimmy fail in finding the Christmas presents, and Stephanie is given fifteen cents.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sibling rivalry sure is quite something, and it is a part of life, too. That's why I like it so much. Of course, not all sibling rivalry is bad, though.

**Stephanie’s POV**

I walked home with Mom after a day of shopping. I got a new sweater and gifts for everyone — not Mom, of course, or Dad. I always make theirs homemade. DJ will accept just about anything. She usually returns it to the store for money.

“Well, Steph, are you excited to see your Uncle Jesse and Joey?” asked Mom.

“You betcha. This Christmas will be so much fun! I’m gonna make string popcorn, which I know happens to be Joey’s favorite decoration,” I explained.

Mom laughed as she opened the door. Kimmy and DJ were chatting on the stools while Uncle Jesse was making something for dinner. Dad and Joey were sitting at the table talking over cups of coffee. Dad had his 1# DAD mug that I got him last year.

“Howdy-ho, everyone!” I called out.

“Hey, Steph, what’s shaking,” Uncle Jesse said, giving me the usual greeting.

“Yo, my fellow cartoon lover. How about tomorrow, five-ish, TV?” asked Joey.

“It’s a date. What shall I wear?” I pretended to muse. I gave Joey a quick hug and then sat down beside DJ. I grabbed a few carrots and tried to get involved with DJ’s conversation.

“So, DJ, how’s the 4th grade?” I asked.

DJ rolled her eyes. “Stephanie, I have a life. **You** have no life. Buzz off.”

“I **do** too have a life!” I protested.

Kimmy rolled her eyes, “Oh, puh-lease. Your date tomorrow is watching cartoons with a guy who still wears footie pajamas.”

“Uh… they’re actually Ninja Turtle pajamas,” Joey corrected.

“See what I mean?” Kimmy said to DJ.

“Well, at least **I** don’t have a monster for hair,” I said in response to DJ.

Kimmy started to laugh. “You know, she got you there.”

DJ rolled her eyes and then grinned. “Oh, shut up, both of you. Come on, Kimmy, let’s go.” The two marched upstairs.

“Wait for me!” I shouted and ran after them.

“ **That** is why I hate sisters,” Uncle Jesse pointed out as I left. Mom just rolled her eyes, and then laughed.

* * *

**DJ’s POV**

“OK, I found out that Dad is keeping the Christmas presents in his closet,” I whispered to Kimmy.

“All right, but what does this have to do with me?” asked Kimmy, putting her hands on her hips.

“I’ve told you a million times. The presents that I don’t like and have no value go to you,” I explained for what seemed like the millionth time.

“Oh, yeah!” Kimmy said as she came to that realization. We were soon interrupted by the annoying little sister, Stephanie.

“Hey, guys!” Stephanie said happily.

Kimmy and I groaned. “Steph, can’t you just go play with Mom, or Joey, or something?” I suggested.

Stephanie placed her finger on her chin. “Hmm, no.”

“OK, squirt. If you leave, I’ll pay you a nickel,” bribed Kimmy, taking out change from her pocket.

“Quarter,” Steph suggested.

“Dime,” said Kimmy.

“Fifteen cents,” replied Stephanie.

“Deal,” said Kimmy, handing over the change. Stephanie then turned and skipped away, humming Christmas carols.

“Oh no, she’s becoming like Dad,” I whispered. Kimmy nodded her agreement.

We were about to open the door when Dad came walking up the stairs. Immediately, Kimmy and I ran for the cover of our room.

“This stinks,” Kimmy said.

“You’re right. Kimmy, did you put on deodorant?” I asked, holding my nose.

“No, but **that’s** not what stinks. The thing is, I didn’t find out what the presents were, and I lost fifteen cents to that squirt that you call your sister,” Kimmy complained.

“Kimmy, suck it up like a real Gibbler,” I said, rolling my eyes.

“DJ, I suggest you go tell that to my mom when she’s on one of her diets,” Kimmy pointed out in reply while giving me a stern look for once. I blinked.

When I think about it now, I realized that Kimmy **did** have a good point there, of course.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, I hope you like this story so far. :) And nice feedback is appreciated, too. :)


	4. Presents, Popcorn and Santa's Helpers

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Joey wonders why Danny would see spoiling the girls with presents as his way of telling them he loves them, and then helps Pam, Stephanie, Michelle and DJ with making string popcorn (which he remembers is his favorite decoration).

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, here’s the next chapter of this really cool Full House story. :)

Joey’s POV

“Danny, tell me something. Why do you spoil these children so much?” asked Jesse.

“Because they are my daughters. I need to show them that they are cared about in this household,” explained Danny.

“And you do this by spoiling them with **presents**?” I asked. We were putting all the Christmas presents in storage up in the attic.

“Yes,” Danny replied. “Is that so wrong?”

“Of course it is, Danny. When I was a kid, I only asked for one thing, and that was the Elvis Comb,” Jesse said.

“There was an Elvis Comb?” I asked, bewildered.

“Uh, yes,” replied Jesse. I noticed that he was saying it like it was the most obvious thing in the world, and rolled my eyes.

Then I noticed a present, and picked it up. “What’s this?”

“That’s my present to DJ,” explained Jesse. “It’s a book about good hair keeping.”

“She will sure love that,” Danny mumbled.

“I also got her a book about music,” Jesse added.

“And what did you get me?” I asked, holding out my hands.

“A nut,” Jesse said.

“Why?” asked Danny, holding out his arms.

“’Cause he is a nut,” Jesse replied, letting out a laugh that sounded more like a bark.

“Very funny, but you should leave the funny stuff to the professional comedian,” I said seriously.

“You mean Michelle,” Jesse replied. I rolled my eyes.

“Why isn’t Pam helping us?” I then inquired after a few minutes.

“She’s keeping the girls busy downstairs. They’re making string popcorn to hang on the tree,” explained Danny.

“What? I wanna help,” I said and ran off. Jesse just rolled his eyes.

Pam’s POV

“Isn’t this fun, girls?” I asked my daughters.

“Yep! **I’m** on a popcorn roll,” Stephanie said proudly. Michelle just made a little noise.

“It **was** fun when we started. Now, what’s the point of putting popcorn on a string?” DJ asked; her teen side was taking over.

“Hey, I bought at least two big bags of popcorn for us to use, so get making popcorn,” I said sternly. DJ rolled her eyes and continued back to work. “Now I know how Santa feels, having his little helpers do all the work for him,” I remarked.

“Hey there. I **thought** I heard string popcorn being made,” Joey said, walking downstairs. We all waved a hello and made room for him at our table.

“Joey, I have a question. Where does Santa get his little helpers?” asked Stephanie. Joey paused and thought for a few moments, while Stephanie waited patiently for him to answer.

“Well… uh… they come in packages. They’re part of the Santa workshop expansion pack,” Joey finally explained, looking uncertain.

“Right,” DJ said sarcastically.

“Mommy, I want a Santa workshop expansion pack for Christmas,” Stephanie demanded.

“No, honey, we don’t need one,” I replied before turning to Joey. “Great job, Joey.”

“Can I go upstairs now?” DJ asked. “I wanna see if there is anything more that I want from catalogs.”

“Not now, honey. Do your popcorn first, and then you can go upstairs,” I answered. DJ sighed.

“You know, DJ, if you throw in a little sad puppy face, and then go for the guilt trip, that might work,” Joey advised.

“OK,” DJ replied before turning to me with sad eyes. “But, Mom, I might never be able to get new books for my future education and things to keep my mind occupied during vacation, so I won’t bug you or Dad.”

“Haha, nice try, Deej. Thanks a lot, Joey,” I replied while turning to Joey with the last few words.

“Hey, just doing my job,” Joey said in defense. I nodded as though I understood what he meant (which I did).

“I’ll have Kimmy over less,” DJ added.

“Now, do you really expect me to believe that?” I asked, putting my hands on my hips.

“No, not really,” DJ replied, shaking her head a little.

I just smiled.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Nice feedback is very much appreciated, as usual... :)


	5. Out of the Season Memories

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> The family shares memories of Halloween (Jesse, Joey) and Christmas (Danny) when they were kids, and go sightseeing.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the next chapter of A Christmas to Remember. :) Hope you guys are liking this story as much as I do. :)

Jesse’s POV

“Life has come to an end,” I said as we walked out to our car.

“Why? It’s the holiday time, and I’m feeling very cheery,” replied Danny.

“ **That’s** why. And we are also going to the bay. To do what? Crawl up and die? That sounds lovely!” I said, unenthusiastic.

“Actually, we are going to see lots of neat things!” Stephanie said happily.

“Sounds great… not,” DJ replied, making sure she said the last part in a whisper.

“Will you guys please stop your complaining? Just get in the car,” Danny said, holding open the car door. Stephanie and Joey seemed to be the only ones happy to go sightseeing. The rest of us got in, much to our complaint. Soon we were off to the bay.

“It’s a long car ride, so smile,” Pam said from up front. Stephanie, who was already smiling, made her grin wider. She looked possessed with her huge smile and bugged out eyes… which reminded me of Linda Blair’s character Regan MacNeil in the 1973 film **The Exorcist**. Luckily, DJ and Stephanie had never seen that film, as it was too scary for them.

Thankfully, DJ ended it for me. “Steph, you’re scaring me. Stop.”

“Wow, I have the power to scare DJ!” exclaimed Stephanie.

“Now **that** we can use to our evil needs,” added Joey as he rubbed his hands together with an evil grin.

“Hey bro, this reminds me of that one Halloween we had. Do you remember?” asked Pam from up front.

“Oh yeah. That was a good time,” I said, trailing off.

“What’s the story, Jess?” asked Danny. The others too asked for the story.

“All right, all right. I’ll tell you. Well, one Halloween, Mom made us go trick or treating. It was a full moon night, and most of the kids were dressed up as werewolves. Pam dressed up as the Wicked Witch from The West (and I couldn’t agree more), while I was Frankenstein, as I couldn’t find an Elvis costume. So, it was about 9 and it was pretty dark. Pam said it would take another 30 minutes for us to reach home, so she suggested we take a shortcut through the woods. I agreed quickly; my legs were starting to ache. We went in the woods and walked for about 2 minutes before we heard a howl. I asked Pam if she had heard there were wolves in the woods; she said there weren’t any.

“We kept on going, the howls growing closer. I asked Pam about werewolves, and this made us both freeze. Some tree branches blew in the wind and made scraping sounds. The snapping of a twig sent us running for our lives. We were about to reach the edge when a hairy werewolf jumped out of nowhere. It walked towards us. Out of defense, I grabbed some hard gumballs and chucked them at the werewolf, and then threw some peppermints. Pam held up her broom in defense. Then, the ‘werewolf’ took off his mask; it was a Halloween costume. He said, 'Hey, no need to harm me. I was coming to ask you about that howling.’ We still don’t know about the howling in those woods.”

I think they were about ready to die of fright.

“Some good times back then, right, bro?” Pam said. I nodded, laughing a little.

“Hey, Joey, do you remember that one Halloween where we told a scary story and freaked everyone out?” Danny asked.

Joey laughed. “Oh, yeah. That was some adventure we had.”

“What’s the story? I told you ours, so what’s yours?” I asked, eager to hear about what happened to Danny and Joey. It was possibly something stupid these two probably did.

“Well, Danny and I were heading to a party when we were both 11. It was hosted by a guy named Sean. After dancing around a bit at the party, we started to tell scary stories. Danny and I had done this story a million times, so I volunteered to go first. The story was, there was an old lady who, whenever she got scared, would put her hand under the bed for her little dog to lick. One day it was raining, and she heard a noise downstairs. Walking downstairs, she saw the window was open, but she didn’t open it. She closed it and heard a noise upstairs. She went upstairs and saw that window was open too. She closed it. Getting scared, the old lady put her hand under the bed and the dog licked it. She went downstairs and heard another noise. She walked up and saw these words written in blood: Humans can lick too. The old lady and dog were never seen again.

“What Danny did is, he grabbed some pillows and turned off the lights. Then he got a flashlight and came in and said, 'I found the dog’s body! The murderer is here!’ Everyone was screaming and screaming. It took us forever to convince them that there was no evil dog murder. No one turned off the lights or went near the beds all night, though,” Joey finished.

“Am I going insane? Or is it supposed to be Christmas and not Halloween?” asked DJ.

“It’s Christmas, DJ,” Stephanie murmured from behind her arms, which were covering her face.

“We just like to share old stories about times when we were kids and did stupid stuff,” I explained.

“Why don’t we share Christmas stories?” suggested Pam.

“Good idea, Pam. And speaking of which, I remember one such good story. When I was little, I wanted to catch Santa so bad. I stayed up all night with a net and a plate of Santa cookies. I got hungry and ate the cookies along with the milk. I stayed like that all night. As a result, I was so tired the next morning that I feel asleep on the presents. They were comfy,” Danny said.

We all laughed at him. The rest of the car ride went by with us sharing happy memories. I even forgot the horrors of going sightseeing — until we got there.

Stephanie’s POV

I kept on checking over my shoulder as we strolled down the bay, checking to see if werewolves or dog murders were there. There were none; it was safe.

DJ noticed me doing this. “What are you doing?” she asked.

“Making sure we don’t die,” I explained.

“Oh, well, thanks… I guess?” She sounded unassured.

After a few minutes, I stopped looking over my shoulder and then began to check out the view. I got some coins from Daddy and put it into one of those little microscope things. I saw a lot of ducks and other birds. Pretty awesome, from my point of view.

When lunchtime came, we stopped at a seafood restaurant overlooking the bay. As we sat down, Uncle Jesse asked, “What’s the point of this? I live in Cali. You usually don’t sightsee your own home.”

Joey looked at him. “I don’t know. I once gave tours around my room for the trash collectors so they wouldn’t get lost.”

DJ looked at me and mouthed, _Wow_. I nodded in agreement.

For lunch, I ordered a small salmon while DJ got some lobster. Dad got a lot of fish, Mom got grab and Joey got squid, while Uncle Jesse got something called lobster torelluni. From my point of view, they all looked gross. I could’ve sworn my salmon was still swimming in my throat.

The rest of the day was fun. We shared some more memories, and I laughed at DJ’s embarrassment when Dad mentioned something she did when she was little. Luckily, I was never mentioned!

On the car ride back home, I annoyed everyone by listing all of the animals I had ever seen in my whole life — in alphabetical order, of course.

I was on the L’s when Uncle Jesse got some tape and put it over my mouth. The rest of the car ride was quiet — boring for me, but not for anyone else. How rude!

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Stephanie’s point of view is a very good one. Plus, seeing Stephanie call some foods by names she’d hear as an almost 5YO is an authentic feel for her age.
> 
> “Grab” = crab.  
> “Torelluni” = tortellini.
> 
> Anyway, nice feedback is — as usual — very much appreciated, please.. :)


	6. Congrats Danny on turning 74!

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> DJ, Pam, Jesse, Stephanie and Joey plan a surprise party for Danny’s birthday, which turns out surprisingly well.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Here’s the next chapter of A Christmas to Remember. :) I hope you’re liking this so far. :)

DJ’s POV

“DJ, could you give me a hand, please? Joey messed up on painting the banner, and now it looks like it says, ‘Congrats, Danny, on turning 74’. He won’t be very happy about that,” my mom said to me as she tried to pull off the banner that hung beneath the stairs. Dad’s birthday was today, and he was turning twenty-eight.

“Sure, Mom. What can I do for you?” I asked, walking over. As I looked more closely at the banner, I saw that it did say seventy-four. “Are you mentally challenged with a paintbrush, Joey?”

Joey looked up from where he was helping Stephanie putting more decorations on the tree. We had a ton of them. “Hey, Yogi was on, and I couldn’t keep my eyes away from it,” Joey said in defense.

“Of course, because all macho men watch Yogi Bear,” Jesse said while walking in; he was cleaning off his hands with a rag. Uncle Jesse was in charge of the cake and snacks. I could smell the dessert wafting in from the open door; from my perspective, it sure smelled good.

“You two, be nice. Now, DJ, I need you to hold the ladder steady and catch the banner when it falls. The paint is a little wet, and I don’t want your father to have a heart attack on his birthday,” Mom instructed.

Carefully, I grabbed the ladder with a hand on each side. “Perfect,” Mom said, giving me an ok sign.

“When is Danny coming home, anyway?” Joey asked.

“Daddy usually stays at work to suck up to the higher people in the work place — well, at least according to Uncle Jesse,” Stephanie answered.

“Jess, be more kind to your brother-in-law,” Mom said sternly from the top of the ladder.

“Fine, fine,” Uncle Jesse said, putting up his hands. He flopped himself lazily on the couch and tore off his cooking apron.

“Is Michelle still sleeping?” Joey asked, not tearing himself away from putting up a horse ornament on one of the tree’s lower branches.

“Like a baby. No pun intended,” Mom replied, adding the last part after a quick pause.

“Sure,” Uncle Jesse said with sarcasm.

“Mom, are you almost done? My arms hurt,” I complained. Holding a ladder was a lot tougher than some people think.

“Almost done… And now… watch out below, DJ,” Mom said as she leaned over just in time to see the banner land flat on my face.

“Thanks, Mom,” I said, pulling off the banner to see that I got red paint all over my hair and face.

“That’s a good look for you, DJ. It’s kind of an improvement,” Stephanie said in between snickers.

I rolled my eyes at her.

Uncle Jesse walked over to me. “Come with me, DJ. I’ll help you with getting that paint out of your hair.”

I allowed myself to be herded away upstairs by Uncle Jesse.

I heard Mom say, “Now, let’s make a new banner. And Joey, you can’t help this time.” I heard Joey let out a little whine. _Good ol’ Joey,_ I thought with a smile.

Danny’s POV

“Thanks again, and Mr. Foster, I love that tie,” I called out to some people at work as I left the building. Mr. Foster gave me a weird look and a small wave from the door.

“I’m an idiot,” I mumbled under my breath as I fiddled with the keys of my car, trying to get it in the lock on my door.

Once I finally got into my car, I cruised back to my house, taking in the sights of nighttime in San Francisco. I turned on the radio and heard Jingle Bells playing. I hummed quietly to myself, occasionally singing every now and then.

“Now, **this** is good music.”

It took me a while to realize where my house was because all the lights were off. Usually, you could see the light in DJ’s room and hear some kind of argument going on between Joey and Jesse.

“It must be my house. I can tell because my key fits in the front door,” I said after I parked the car and walked up the steps. However, the second I opened the door, I immediately jumped back, startled.

The reason why was because I had walked in to see a room full of people, decorations, my family, and friends and they all shouted, “SURPRISE!”

I walked back in nervously, expecting them to shout again. After recovering from the shock, I demanded, “What’s going on?”

“Don’t you know? It’s your twenty-eighth birthday today!” DJ and Pam both called to me.

“I know that, but why a **party**?” I asked.

“Because, Danny, parties are a way of life, a culture, a way of saying hello and goodbye, the meaning of life. Plus, we needed something to do for a little fun today,” Jesse said as he walked over and patted me on the back — very hard.

I smiled and mouthed 'Ow’ when he wasn’t looking.

I noticed the big banner that said 'Congrats Danny on turning…’ I couldn’t make it out because there was an x over something and numbers rewritten on the banner.

Joey noticed my confusion and whispered, “It’s a twenty-eight.”

“Thanks, pal,” I replied. From my perspective, Joey is such a good friend to have around, and he knows how to lighten things up, especially whenever things are a bit too tough. After all, somebody did say once that laughter is the best medicine.

“Well, what are we waiting for? Let’s party!” Jesse shouted.

As if on cue, music started to blare from invisible speakers and everyone began to dance. Some people congratulated me; others said it was all downhill from here. One or two asked if I “had the will planned out already”. I suspected Jesse paid them to do that.

I hung out with a few of my friends from work, and we talked about our boss and what we were going to do with our families for Christmas. Some of Pam’s friends chatted excitedly to me, going on and on about how lucky Pam was to have a family already.

I managed to escape to the food area and grab a handful of chips before being pulled back into the dancing crowd of friends. It seemed like everyone wanted to shake my hand, talk to me, or ask if we could hang out later. I was panting and breathing heavily; I was a little too much danced out.

“Bye, Danny,” said my friends as they each walked past me. It was around two a.m. and the party people had to go home. Jesse and Joey were eating cake and comparing phone numbers of girls they got. Jesse won… of course.

“Hey guys, I’m gonna go tuck in the girls,” I said to them, heading upstairs.

“They’re in bed already?” Jesse asked, surprised.

“Yeah, they crashed around ten,” Joey answered.

“Wow. When I was a kid, I stayed up until four every night,” remarked Jesse.

“Thank God my kids aren’t like you,” I said before heading upstairs and going to the girls’ room, humming Jingle Bells.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well, what do you think? Nice feedback is very much appreciated, of course. :)


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